Aphelion
by VigilantSempai
Summary: With his victory over Yhwach and the Quincy, Ichigo's life was supposed to be simple again, or as simple as his life could get. But one slip of the tongue from Urahara causes Ichigo to make a choice. He leaves and suddenly the world isn't as small as he thought it was, not that he cared, he'd be concerned if the strongest being in the world was a seventeen year old teen.


AN: Hi everyone, This is the first chapter of my Bleach-Highschool DxD crossover fanfiction. There's not much to say right now, so just give the story a try. Either you like it or you don't.

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach or HighSchool DxD, nor do I make any money from this.**

* * *

 **July 25** **th** **, 2006**

 **(Eight Years and Six Months before Issei Turns)**

Ichigo tried.

Honestly he did, but rarely, if ever, was he as angry as he was right now. Had he still been in his spirit body, his spiritual pressure would have been pressing down upon everyone in the room, suffocating without bias. The small room in Urahara's Shoton that had born witness to so many meeting between the teen and his friends, was thick with tension. The wooden table, smooth and polished, was currently cracking under the strength of his grip.

He took a breath, trying vainly to calm the raging storm that was threatening to break free of his self- control. He took another, shuddering breath, literally feeling himself forcibly push down his rising emotions.

"Say that again, Urahara-san," he said, his voice sounding more controlled than he felt.

The blond man set his teacup down in front of him, peering through his bangs before he sighed heavily, and taking off his green and white striped hat and set it on the table head bowed. Next to him, Ichigo's father, Isshin, looked on worriedly. His black hair spiked as usual, and his face forever stubbled. On Urahara's other side Yoruichi sat with her arms crossed over her chest, her purple hair pulled in a ponytail. He always liked the way it complimented her darker skin, so he focused on that to keep his mind occupied while the blond spoke

Urahara sighed again, raising his head to show patchwork of stitches that lined his face, a direct consequence of using his bankai while he was injured.

"Kurosaki-san," the blond started, "you can't go back to your life here in the World of the Living."

The emotions that Ichigo had suppressed not half a minute earlier, came surging to the surface again, and only by gritting his teeth did the teen manage to keep himself from speaking out of anger. Another shuddering breath.

"Why?"

"Your reiryoku levels are too high. You'll end up hurting people just by being around them. You might even kill someone."

Ichigo's scowl, if possible deepened. "Then get me a seal," he said. "The captains and lieutenants come here with seals on, or they'd do the same thing to everyone in Karakura."

"It's a bit more complicated than that, Ichigo," his father said, trying to placate his son.

"Then uncomplicate it," the orange haired teen growled. He opened his mouth to snap at his father some more, but Urahara cut him off.

"Kurosaki-san," the man's voice smoothly cut in, his green eyes peircing Ichigo, "If we put a seal on you while you're in your human body, it can cause you to permanently seal the greater portion of your powers."

"Then modify it," Ichigo snapped. "That's what you do, don't you? Modify things so that they suit your needs?" Urahara closed his eyes sighing, while Yoruichi made a face in agreement, nodding her head in thought.

"There's more to it than tha-" Urahara stopped when he felt Isshin place a hand on the man's shoulder.

"Son, listen to-"

SNAP!

The section of the table that Ichigo was grasping broke off as the teens temper was pulled to it's limit and snapped. The occupants of the room all recoiled in surprise at the display. While Ichigo was strong both for a human and a Shinigami, for him to break off a section of a solid, two inch thick table was something they never thought they'd see, at least while he was in his human body. And with just his bare hands with no leverage

"Ichigo…" Yoruichi said, being the first to regain herself. Her call fell on deaf ears as the teen glared at his father.

"Don't," Ichigo started slowly. "Don't call me that. You lost that privilege when you lied to me for twelve years straight." Isshin recoiled as if slapped, his mouth working without making any noise, but Ichigo took no notice only turning to the blond shopkeeper. "And you! I know that you can do modify the seals, so don't fuck with me!"

Urahara, in a rare show of being caught off balance, raised his hands in surrender. "Yes, I can modify them, but with the amount of time it would take, should something happen to Soul Society-" The scientist stopped abruptly, realizing what he had just said, while Yoruichi and Isshin looked at him aghast, before they both abruptly turned to look at Ichigo, expecting to see rage and anger.

What they saw was worse.

Ichigo's whole body was frozen, his eyes wide and unseeing for several long seconds, before something hard and fiery filled his stomach. So that was how it was, huh? That was what it was all about. Why Urahara had refused to accept him, and why his friends and the captains had been reluctant to let him leave.

"Is that all I was to you guys?" he asked, his voice carrying through the deadly silence. "A weapon? A shield for everyone to hid behind while I took all the hits?"

"Ichigo, list-"

"NO!," the teen roared silencing the blond. "You listen! I've taken a lot of shit from and because of you! When I first lost my powers, you put me in a hole and let me become a hollow, then sent me to Soul Society without telling me shit! Then you sent me to Hueco Mundo, in the same condition! I've died because of you! Twice!" He rounded on his father, a blush of fury already on his face. "I was beaten, stabbed, hacked! I've had holes blown through my chest! I've had someone push their hand through my heart, only to get back up and fight because I know that I needed to!

"I gave up my powers, a PART OF MY SOUL, only for everyone to turn their backs and pretend I didn't exist! Then you all come waltzing back in when I'd been betrayed, before almost immediately being thrown into another war, where I found out I was being lied to by you two!"

Isshin looked at his son, his eyes wide in shock, while Urahara gazed at the table in front of him, knowing that the teens words were right.

"I listened to you two!" the teen raged, slamming his hands onto the table, unaware of his reiatsu leaking out of him. "I've swung my sword a whoever you've pointed at! I've been patient with you, listened to you, I _trusted_ you, and the best you can come up with is that I need to go back to protect Soul Society!? You ungrateful pieces o-"

Whatever the teen was going to say was cut off when his breath caught in his chest and hitched, causing the teen to double over and gasp for breath between each series of coughs tore through his body. The three adults in the room watched, shocked at the sudden turn of events before they noticed the blood that flew from the teens mouth and specked the broken table.

Once again Yoruichi was the first to regain her wits.

"Ichigo!" she called jumping over the table to help support him, rubbing his back in an attempt to sooth him. It seemed to be helping, and instead of bloody, wracking coughs, he just dry heaved, gasping for breath that just caught in his throat. Yoruichi, a single arm wrapped around the teen waist and a hand rubbing his back, shot a dark look over at the two men across from her finally getting them to act.

"Ichigo!" Isshin shouted, getting to his feet to try and help his son but stopped halfway when the teen raised a single hand.

It took several more moments for Ichigo to stop coughing, but when he did, he gently pulled himself from Yoruichi's embrace. He took several deep breaths to stabilize himself, before taking a couple of steps toward the exit. Isshin and Yoruichi made to go to him when he stumbled, but he just raised his hand again, stopping them.

"Don't," he said, his voice, filled with malice and energy not several minutes ago, sounded tired. "Just don't. Find another guard dog, because I'm done." He didn't say anything else before he left, leaving behind three saddened and pensive adults.

* * *

His anger had only grown by the time he got back to his house, and for that he was grateful as it. He could pretend that reason his hands were shaking was because of his raging emotions, and focus on that instead of the dull ache in his chest or the soreness that suddenly permeated through his body.

So Urahara didn't want to put in the effort to help Ichigo because he was still needed to help Soul Society? Fuck that! He'd done his share and more in helping the afterlife, and in actuality he wasn't even suppose to do that. He was human, the extenuating circumstances surrounding his parents and his birth being excluded. His whole life had been an experiment of Aizen, and a pawn in Urahara's game. He'd gone along with it, clinging to the hope that the man was actually trying to help him, deluding and forcibly blinding himself to the hole in the man's explanations, ignoring the way he'd brush off certain questions.

Then it all came to a head when his father had told him about how he met his mom.

Both men had known about Ichigo being a hybrid of all known spiritual beings. They had known since before he was born, and they had kept it from him for _years_. He could overlook the fact that his father never told him anything about the supernatural from before his mother's death. He could see ghosts and so could she, so everything was fine.

But then Kurosaki Masaki died.

His mother _died_ because he could see ghosts and had been impulsive. Just thinking about that day made Ichigo's heart ache, throbbing almost painfully in his chest. He had loved his mother, and to this day was still a momma's boy, something he wasn't afraid to admit. She had been the kindest, sweetest, most beautiful woman in his eyes and he would have done anything she had asked of him. And she had cared for him, like any mother should, and that alone was something he would always cherish. She hadn't deserved to die.

And still, his father hadn't told him anything.

Maybe it was Ichigo's age, or his mental state at the time, or, most likely, Isshin had hoped that nothing else would happen. Maybe his father had hoped that Ichigo's powers wouldn't develop. Whatever the reason, he was wrong. So much could have been avoided if they had just been a bit more trusting of him.

His own father had lied to him, played him for a fool, letting his son blunder his way through the supernatural world with an idiotic smile on his face. He taught Ichigo his strongest technique, but only after revealing that he had Shinigami powers expecting Ichigo to not make a big deal out of it. Then, after Ichigo had used the forbidden Shiba technique, after he had used **Mugetsu** to cut Aizen in half and see Aizen get back up, more deranged than ever, only then did Urahara step out from the shadows. He revealed about how he had been relying upon Ichigo to harm the madman enough for his new kido to work.

He had been relying on Ichigo to hurt Aizen. He had been rely on the fifteen year old to essentially defeat a man who had something with the power to grant the users any wish stuck in the middle of his chest. He had been counting on Ichigo, the fifteen year old human, to learn the **Saigo no Getsuga Tenshō** , the technique that would result in the wielder losing their powers.

He had expected all of that, factored everything, and came to a conclusion and made plans for Ichigo to _use_ the technique, willingly give up a part of his soul for the purpose of bringing down Aizen.

And Ichigo had done just that. He learned that forbidden technique unique to his family from Soul Society and used it against Aizen, wielding that awesome, transcendent power, and defeated Aizen.

Then, he was effectively isolated.

Those seventeen months had been hell for him. The looks of pity from his friends, the helplessness he felt whenever he saw one of them rush out of class with a rushed, half-baked excuse. He hadn't been able to see ghosts, something that he had been able to do for as long as he could remember. He hadn't been able to do anything but look to the future and be bitter about the past, trying to focus and accept his life as a regular human. And for a while he managed to delude himself with that illusion, thinking that he just might be able to live the rest of his life content with himself.

Then came Kūgo Gingō and Xcution. The man had promised Ichigo that he could get him to get his powers back, and he had delivered. He had introduced Ichigo to people he had come to genuinely come to like. Hell he'd even pointed Ichigo to an enemy that he could swing his sword at. Then that man had stabbed him in the back, almost literally.

With his friends and family having turned on him, Ichigo had taken comfort in knowing that it was Tsukishima's' doing, no matter how small it was. But when Gingō had stabbed Ichigo and drained him of the powers had he had worked so hard to get, Ichigo had hit rock bottom. He'd tried to get his powers back, tried to become strong enough to protect his friends and family. He'd tried to stop the pitying and sympathetic looks he'd gotten from Chad and Orihime and Ishida, but had ended up empowering a man that cared nothing for them.

And then Urahara Kisuke pulled through, gifting Rukia with the sword that would jumpstart his powers again, figuratively reaching out and pulling Ichigo back to his feet when he hit his lowest.

Ichigo had killed Gingō.

He'd never killed anyone before, and, honestly, he'd felt like trampled shit over it for several weeks after. But he hadn't let anybody know. He didn't tell his friends that the bags under his eye were because of his nightmares, only that he was just getting acquainted with his old routine. He didn't show his sisters his tear stained cheeks when the guilt and pressure of everyone's expectations became too much for him, and he could do nothing but shake violently, his eyes filled with tears and his stomach clenching painfully inside his body. No, he didn't let anyone see any weakness, he'd just gotten his powers and he wouldn't show anything other that he had the strength to protect again.

He had wanted it anyway.

Then the war with the quincy broke out, and everything that wasn't directly connected to it was pushed out of the way. He focused. On the immediate enemy, the immediate problem. Then, out of nowhere, his world had been shattered when Tensa Zangetsu had been broken. His partner had never failed him before, and he couldn't help but compare the sensation of seeing his sword broken to having his powers gone again.

The trip up to the the Zero Division had helped, they'd healed the teen and his friends, gave him advice, information and even told him that they'd help train him. And they did, but never had Ichigo been so humiliated than when he had failed in the asauchi test. Never before had he been beaten to the point that his enemies could stand over him, and his pride was only hurt more by the fact that they had looked down at him with cold, unseeing eyes.

The trip to the human world that followed, his talk with both Ikumi and his father left his head reeling, but he had pushed his emotions and questions to the side. At that moment, they were unimportant, and he had bigger problems. Everything had descended into a whirlwind of fighting, after his long fall from and subsequent trip back to the Soul King's Palace.

He didn't even want to think about his final battle with Yhwach.

But even when facing against the man that had forced him to skewer and cut the Soul King, Ichigo had prevailed, pushing himself further than he had ever gone before with the help of his zanpakutō and friends.

He had done it. He'd pushed himself past his human limitations for his friends, he'd fought for them, bled for them, _killed_ , and been humiliated in the process of helping Soul Society. And throughout it all, Urahara had been there with that damn smile on his face and words that nudged Ichigo in the way he needed to go. He'd given Ichigo his powers back, both times, and helped train him. He'd helped train his friends, and even helped his sister. And along the way he'd manipulated Ichigo's life as much as Aizen.

Nearly growling at the thought, the orange haired teen shook his head clear of his brooding thoughts, noticing that he was approaching his home. The same home that his father lived in. Feeling his scowl deepen in response to such a thought, Ichigo quickened his pace and entered his house, and slammed the door behind him. He quickly stalked through the house, not even bothering to take his shoes off.

He barely even paused when he stepped inside his room, instead letting his instincts take hold as he moved toward his closet and took out two duffel bags. It took him ten minutes to fill them with his clothes, his laptop, and some spare books. Zipping the second bag shut, Ichigo made his way to his desk, grabbing his wallet stuffed with all the money he'd made in high school or at his job. He moved to grab his badge but hesitated. Would he need it? Probably, but he knew that Soul Society could track and listen to him through it.

"...O-onii-chan?"

Ichigo froze before turning around slowly to see both his sisters standing in his room. They both recoiled when they saw him, and he only just realized just how angry he must have been to scare them. He felt his anger fade away, replaced with immense guilt and weariness. He sighed, feeling his body sag in exhaustion.

"Ichi-nii," Karin asked, taking a step toward him. She was wary of him, Ichigo realized, and the realization hit him like a sucker punch from Grimmjow. "What are you doing?"

The older teen sighed again, as he glanced at the dark sky outside his window. "I'm leaving," he said simply. He heard his sister's shuffle a little, but he couldn't bring himself to look at them. He knew he'd see something that make him feel even more guilty.

"Where are you going?" Yuzu asked. He shrugged, busying himself by stooping down and picking up his bags and setting them on his bed. "When will you be back?"

Ichigo froze. When _was_ he going to be back? Where _was_ he going? Why was he leaving in the first place? Ichigo nearly snorted, he knew why he was leaving, and while he could stay, he wouldn't be able to live his own life. He dragged his hands down his face, inhaling deeply before he released his breath slowly; the simple motion letting him remaster himself a little.

"I don't know, Yuzu," he said.

"Why?"

The orange haired teen didn't respond to Karin, nor did he need to ask her to specify. He knew what she meant. He opened his mouth, intent on telling them, they deserved to know, but the words caught in his throat. How could he tell them that dad, their own father, was one of the reason that he was leaving. That he couldn't stand staying in Karakura Town because he needed to get away.

That he was virtually running away from his problems.

"Is it us?"

Ichigo nearly broke his neck from how fast his head snapped to look at his little sisters. Karin was staring at him, wringing her hands in front of her, a nervous tick she had since she was a little kid. Yuzu was staring at the floor, her pointer fingers pushing against each other. "W-what?" he managed to get out.

"D-did we do something?" Yuzu asked, and Ichigo felt as if his insides had been frozen when he heard how thick her voice was. She was close to tears. "I-I know that y-you went through something a-a while ago. You were so distant before, disappearing for long times, and you started acting weird at times. I- we were so worried." She lifted her head, showing Ichigo that she was indeed crying. "Th-then, one time you came back, and I was so happy, but Onii-chan was so sad- and I started spending more time with you- and you seemed happier- but now you're angry a-a-and-"

In less than a second, Ichigo had crossed the distance between them, and kneeled before his little sisters, pulling them into a tight embrace. Yuzu reacted immediately lunging into his chest with a mournful wail, letting out her tears to be soaked by his shirt. Karin hesitated for only a second, before he felt her lean into him and start shaking at regular intervals. She was crying.

Ichigo just pulled them closer, laying his cheek on top of Karin's head as he rubbed their backs soothingly. "Shhhh," he whispered, slowly rocking back and forth. "Shhh, it's okay." It took several minutes of wailing and sobbing to get the twins to calm down. They pulled back a little, rubbing at their eyes, but Ichigo gently reached out and rubbed their tears away, cupping one of their cheeks in each of his hands.

"Onii-chan," Yuzu started softly, but he just stopped her with a small shake of his head. He didn't say anything for a couple of seconds, only looking at both his little sisters.

"First off," he said softly, "don't you ever, _ever_ , think that I'd leave because I'm angry at you guys. You two are my little sisters; my beautiful, lovely princesses, and I'd never leave because of something like that." His princesses. That was something he used to call them when they were young, and Karin and Yuzu still believed monsters hid under their bed and that they were only safe by sleeping with him. He'd stopped calling them that when they turned ten and Karin had huffed and kicked him in the shin.

"Bu-"

"Yuzu," he cut her off. "I can't tell you right now, I don't think I have enough time to," someone would without a doubt be after him soon, "but I will tell you that I will see you again. I don't know how long it will take, nor do I know where I'm going, but I will tell you why I'm leaving." The girls looked at him, hanging onto his every word. "It's dad," he simply, before lifting a hand to stop their outbursts. "You'll learn the whole story eventually, in fact…" hit by sudden inspiration, Ichigo trailed off for a second before he focused back onto the girls. "Ask Chad."

"W-what?" Yuzu asked shocked, but he Karin gave a little nod.

"We will," he black haired sister said, her voice a little thick. Ichigo knew that Karin already had a good understanding of his whole story, but he doubted she knew the full, in depth one, or even their own origin story.

"After you do that," he said over his other sister's incoherent sputtering, getting her to stop, "ask dad or Urahara as to why I left. Okay?" They both nodded, and once again Ichigo made a spontaneous decision. "I have gifts for you two." Yuzu immediately got a gleam in her eye, and Ichigo couldn't help the small grin that came to his face when he saw it. Ruffling their hair a bit, he stood the joints in his legs popping and his muscles protested.

He must have been kneeling longer than he though.

Still, he ignored the slight pain, knowing that it'll go away soon enough, and it was a small price to pay for comforting his sisters. Opening his closet, Ichigo reached into the far back corner and pulled out a small black box that was covered in a light layer of dust. Whipping it off a little, the teen brought it over to his bed, his sisters appearing on either side of him in an instant. Smirking a little bit more pulled the top off, to reveal two pieces of jewelry.

On the left side of the box was a thin silver necklace that ran through an intricately carved figure eight, a small circular ruby resting in the bottom circle of the figure eight. Next to it was a spiraling jewelry piece made of silver that was about five inches in length from end to end. The metal was smooth on the inside, while the outside had small characters etched into it.

Upon seeing the jewelry, both girls went wide eyed, and Ichigo felt his smile widen fractionally.

"This one," he said, pointing to the necklace, "is Yuzu's, and the armband is for Karin. Mom had these made for you guys as presents." He was going to say more, but he felt Yoruichi's reiatsu spike for a few seconds before dimming causing him to glance in the woman's direction. Frowning to himself for a second, Ichigo turned back to his sisters who were watching him. "I'll tell you guys more when I see you again." He swooped down, and planted a kiss on each their cheeks, then grasped his bags and moved to leave before he saw his badge on his desk.

"Karin," he said, "You see that badge there?"

"Yeah?"

"Take it, and when you see Rukia next ask her for help using it." He didn't wait for a reply, just smoothly slipping out of his room, and into the hallway. He heard Yuzu whine that it wasn't fair that Karin got two presents and couldn't help but chuckled. He'd make it up to her, but right now he had to get out of Karakura.

At least he'd left his house in a better mood than he'd arrived in.

* * *

 **(Several minutes before)**

The room was quiet.

The echo of Ichigo's fading footsteps and the slamming door was still ringing in everyone's mind, but for Yoruichi the look that the orange haired teen had made when Kisuke had mentioned Soul Society was forever branded into her brain, and, like any new burn, it stuck out sorely in her mind. Fresh and painful, it throbbing with every beat of her heart like it was a physical wound. She actually wished it was, at least then she knew she what she could do. She'd clean it, probably drinking the alcohol as well, before bandaging it and letting herself rest until it healed. But it wasn't physical.

How did one treat a wound to the mind? Remove the image placed in front of their eyes like it was perched on the tip of their nose?

You distract them, and the universe was merciful enough to provide the woman with something to do just that.

Her eyes focused unconsciously, narrowing in on the small, drying pool of crimson blood on the table before her. There was a significance in the blood, something she knew instinctively and searched for, but it alluded her for several seconds before she found it and was hit with a sudden realization that while the universe was merciful, it was also cruel, often both at the same time.

Right in front of her eyes, wisps of reiatsu lazily drifted into the air from the crimson liquid before dissipating. And if that wasn't curious enough, the reiatsu was multi-colored; some wisps were blue, others red, then there was gold, and finally black. All of them wafted away from the small pool of blood, twisting around each other like snakes dancing, getting lighter and more opaque before finally disappearing. Now that alone was cause enough for concern, but what nearly caused Yoruichi to panic was a single thought that ran through her mind.

 _That's Ichigo's blood_.

It took a lot to make Yoruichi lose her cool. She had been the captain of the Second Division of the Goteijūsantai, as well as the former head of the Onmitsukidō. She'd been raised as the heiress of one of the most noble household in all of the Seireitei, and threw all that away because her friends were in need without batting an eyelash. She'd fought in numerous battles, most life threatening,and had always come out victorious, or at least with the ability to walk away. For her to lose her composure, there had to be something of great significance, or an imminent threat.

Or one of the people she cared about being in grave danger, and her instincts were telling her that Ichigo was practically neck deep in it. Like always.

"Kisuke," she said into the silence, her eyes riveted on the beautifully horrific sight in front of her. She didn't hear a reply for several seconds, and when she finally managed to tear her eyes away from the blood she saw both her companions staring as she had just done. Isshin had a hand halfway raised scratch at his stubbled chin, his black eyes wide in shock. Kisuke, on the other hand, was looking at the blood with a look that she'd seen before, and it sent a shiver down her spine. Back when they had still been a part of the Goteijūsantai, Kisuke had gotten that look whenever she had asked about his research that she later found out spawned the Hōgyoku.

She loved the man, really, but his intense drive to scientifically analyze and understand anything unknown has constantly gotten the better of him and caused everyone no end of trouble. Especially Ichigo.

"Fascinating…" the blond man breathed, trailing off, and Yoruichi felt a shiver again.

"Kisuke!" she barked, snapping the man out of whatever thoughts he was having, though his eyes were still slightly glassy.

"Yeah.." his tone was breathless, and Yoruichi knew that meant that, while he was listening and would answer questions, he was still thinking of something rather hard. It was actually better if he was this way, because when he was in this state he never lied. She was about to ask what was happening but Isshin beat her too it.

"What is that!?" he asked, his voice louder than necessary.

"Reiatsu…" Kisuke replied, still breathlessly. Yoruichi nearly growled. Even when he wasn't trying to lie, the infuriating man still managed to get under her skin. From the look that Isshin shot Urahara, he was feeling the same way as she was. The man must've felt their gaze or, more likely, their killing intent, because he suddenly snapped out of his daze, his green eyes moving from the concerned father to the concerned mentor. "It's also the reason why Ichigo needs to go to back Soul Society."

There was a pregnant silence that lasted several long seconds before Yoruichi or Isshin found their voice.

"What?" she asked.

Kisuke sighed, reaching over and picking up his hat from the broken table using it to shadow as much of the stitches on his face as possible. "The human body is very much like the worlds as we know it. The soul would be Soul Society or Hueco Mundo, while the body would be the Human World."

"What does this have to do with anything?" Isshin snapped. "We're talking about why my son has reiatsu coming out of his blood, not some philosophical crap about worlds and bodies."

A single green eye appeared from under the brim of Kisuke's hat, sharp and dangerous. Isshin didn't flinch, though he did seem to lose some of his angry presence. "If you would allow me to finish, Shiba-san, I would get to that." It was rare for Kisuke to get like that and it was always better to just listen when he did; so they did. "As I said, the human body is very much like the worlds, but there is marked differences, the biggest being the barrier that separates the soul from the body.

"The worlds are separated by the Precipice World, the Dangai, and the pathways are created by the cleaner, or are created through empty space to get to Hueco Mundo. Unlike the three worlds, the body does not have openings that allow the soul to interact with the actual world. In that sense, the soul is separated from the body. If it wasn't then people would actually die and there would be no Soul Society. Quincy arrows are able to be used against humans and breach the barrier between the body and soul, totally destroying it. Had Yhwach attacked the Human World the balance would have been completely destroyed."

Both Yoruichi and Isshin blanched at the prospect.

"Humans with high reiryoku have a thinner but stronger barrier between their soul and body. This allows them to see and interact with spirits as well as giving them a natural, small tolerance to attacks from souls. The important thing is that the soul does not have a form until the body is killed and it is released… until you get to Subsitute Shinigami that is."

Urahara Kisuke paused there, and Yoruichi found herself hanging on his every word. While her blond friend had a penchant for being dramatic and flamboyant naturally, he really captivated people whenever he was really serious.

"The badge that is given to the Shinigami Daikō is used to momentarily simulate death of the body so that the soul can be released." Here Kisuke paused and the dark skinned woman felt the sense of forbidding that had dissipated a little returned in full force.

"What about the barrier?" Yoruichi had been afraid to ask, already knowing that she wasn't going to like the answer. Still her body had acted on it's own, her mouth opening and closing to ask the question that would likely change Ichigo's life again.

The blonde took a deep breath. "The badge is designed to punch a hole into the barrier, and let the incorporeal form of the soul leave the body, taking the shape, mind and mannerisms of the person in the process. Because the soul needs to travel through the barrier and the body, for a split second all the accumulated reiatsu that the soul contains is exposed to the body."

Yoruichi's gasp was covered by Isshin's yell of ' _What!'_

"That's not all," Kisuke said cutting them off before they could get into the swing of yelling at him. "The badge isn't suppose to be used as much as the young Kurosaki has been using it. It's left scarring on his barrier, making it easier for the reiryoku in his soul to break through his barrier and seep into his body. In small doses it strengthens the body, but in larger doses…"

He trailed off, but Yoruichi still felt her worry swiftly be overtaken by red hot anger. "What," she groused out, "happens when he's exposed to larger doses?"

Her old friend bowed his head, letting the his hat shadow everything but the stubble on his chin. "In large doses, it will quickly poison him."

Yoruichi never said anything, but her anger at his words exploded around her, her reiatsu erupting from her gigai. It took her several seconds and deep breaths through her nose before she managed to calm herself enough to reign in her powers. She didn't say anything, wouldn't have been able to over Isshin's yelling, instead she swiftly stood and made her way to the door with quick purposeful steps, but before it shut behind her she still managed to hear one last sentence from Kisuke.

"Isshin, your son is dying."

* * *

 **September 1** **st** **, 2006**

It took nearly two months for them to call off the search for Ichigo, and, consequently, for Karin to give into Yuzu's insistence that they needed to go see Chad.

Less than two minutes after he had left the house, a woman, tall and beautiful with purple hair and dark skin, knocked on the door asking for her brother. Karin had told her he'd left, and the woman had disappeared before the last symbol had even left her lips.

She and Yuzu had been left to their own devices for several days after that. Ichi-nii's friends hadn't shown up like they used to, and their father had temporarily closed the clinic to search for his son. He had been unsuccessful and hadn't been home for longer than it took to leave some money on the table for them to get groceries, not that Karin or Yuzu minded much. Sense Ichigo had said that he was leaving because of their dad, Yuzu had pretty much used the name Isshin as a synonym for the devil, and Karin couldn't bring herself to really care that much for the guy. Despite Ichigo being a hard, delinquent looking teen on the outside, he was really a giant vat of melted chocolate, and it took a it took a lot for him to lose faith in one of his friends, and more so for family.

She still loved the man, he _was_ her dad, but he hadn't even said anything about Yuzu's puffy eyes.

Her twin had taken Ichigo's sudden leaving hard, despite the words their brother had said to them before he left. Yuzu still cried every once in awhile, but at least she didn't cry herself to sleep, and ever since that night she'd been pestering Karin to go and talk to Chad, like their brother told them to.

Karin, herself, wasn't doing much better. She cried herself, something she wasn't too ashamed to admit, and she was losing sleep. Her brother had been a strong pillar in her life, someone who she could model herself after and be proud of. He was strong; mentally, physically, and, if she heard right, spiritually superior to a lot of people in Soul Society. He'd balanced his regular life with his spiritual one with a grace she was sure she'd be hard pressed to duplicate. She didn't know everything about his spiritual life, only that he'd saved a lot of people and given up his powers in the process before getting them back.

"Karin-chan!"

Yuzu's voice broke her out of her musings, and she suddenly felt the cold of the world around her. She pulled her own sweatshirt tighter around her, glad that she'd chosen jeans instead of the shorts she had been thinking of wearing. Next too her, Yuzu stood looking at her expectantly. She wore a blue skirt with black leggings underneath and black boots. She had her hair pulled into a single ponytail, and one of Ichigo's leftover sweatshirts, a gray zip-up that was unzipped at the top to show off the necklace that Ichigo had left them. The sweatshirt completely drowned her, the sleeves passing her hands and falling almost to her knees.

Karin had almost wanted to scold Yuzu for going through Ichi-nii's room, but then realized that she had done the same thing, taking a scarf (which she had wrapped around her neck) from the rest of the clothes that had be left behind by their brother.

Shaking her head lightly to focus, Karin gave Yuzu a nod before turning to the door in front of them. The silver plaque read **231** in slightly faded black lettering. She raised her hand and knocked on the door several times before stepping back. Yuzu shuffled closer to her, her shoulder bumping lightly against Karin's. A small movement, but Karin knew that Yuzu was giving support as well as asking for it. She shifted a little herself bumping her shoulder against Yuzu's again. No matter how different they were, Karin and Yuzu were twins, and they had a way of communicating that went deeper than words.

The door in front of them opened, and the mountain of muscle that was Yasutora Sado appeared before them. Chad was tall, taller than her brother, by almost a full head, with corded muscle that could be seen through his black and purple floral patterned shirt. He wore jeans and his shirt was cut in a 'v' deep enough to show off the slight amount of hair that had appeared on his chest. His goatee had grown slightly bushier and thin sparse beard lined his jaw. His brown hair was hanging over his left eye, leaving one brown eye to peer at the twins before him.

All the words that Karin had prepared on the way to Chad's place, all the thoughts on how to proceed with a conversion disappeared while under the dark skinned man's gaze. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out so she closed it. To her right, Yuzu shuffled a bit closer and took her hand, squeezing it tightly. She squeezed her sister's hand in return, but she didn't take her eyes off Chad. They stood like that for several long seconds before a voice shattered the eerie silence between them.

"Who is it!?" a voice called from behind the older teen. It was a gruff voice, that carried emotion naturally, anger more easily than others.

Chad didn't reply only staring at the twins for another second, before he stepped a bit to the side, and jerked his head slightly to the side. It was an easy enough motion to understand. _Come in_. The twins glanced at each other before stepping into the apartment. They took of their shoes in the small foyer and put on slippers while Chad shut his door behind them and started down the hall.

His home suited him rather well, Karin observed, noticing the sparse but homey decorations. And end table in the hall, a couple picture frames were hung up in the hallway, over the bland off-white/cream color all apartment buildings seemed to be painted. They quickly followed after the tall teen, Yuzu still clutching Karin's hand tightly. Chad led them through the back of the apartment and into what seemed to be the living room, that was quickly nearing its maximum capacity.

On the single long couch sat Rukia, someone both Yuzu and Karin hadn't seen in a long time. She had gotten taller, something that the black haired Kurosaki could tell even if she was sitting down, but she probably was only a little taller than Karin, herself. Her surrogate sister, as her father liked to call her, had cut her hair into a short bob that ended at the nape of her neck, though that single patch of hair still fell over the bridge of her nose. She wore a shawl as white as snow around her neck that covered the entirety of her torso sans her right arm and side, where Karin spotted a tight black thermal shirt. Her legs were crossed elegantly under her black leggings and sky blue skirt. As soon as Karin and Yuzu entered the room her purple eyes widened in surprise.

Next to her sat a guy with long hair as red as fresh blood and a hard scowling face. He wore a white and blue striped cloth around his forehead, and pulled his hair into a sloppy ponytail that left long tresses of crimson falling about his shoulders. He was leaned back casually, but it didn't take an expert to see the anxiety in him. One of his legs, covered by dark, ripped jeans improbable for fall or winter, was bouncing lightly on the floor. With his look and his arms were crossed across his chest under a fur lined leather jacket, left the man looking as if he was very close to throwing something out a window.

Next to him sat somebody Karin easily recognized. Inoue Orihime seemed to be sulking, something that was odd to see on the usually eccentric girl. Her hair fell around her face, framing it naturally, her two blue hair clips on either side of her face while the rest of her hair fell down her back in a curtain of orange that was only just notably different than her brothers. Her brown eyes were staring at the still steaming cup of tea in her hands. She wore a dress, pure white with a black blazer over it, a necklace hanging around her throat.

The last person on the couch was, surprisingly enough Arisawa Tatsuki. Neither of the twins had seen the girl around for several months, even though Ichigo had sworn that he was still friends with her whenever they asked. Her hair had been cut short on the side of her head and on the front, but she let the back grow long enough to fall to the middle of her back. She was wearing a red and yellow jumpsuit obviously about to go practice her martial arts, but she looked more likely to use the red-haired guy as a practice dummy than make the effort to go all the way to her gym.

Standing by the window in the back of the room was the form that Karin recognized as Ishida Uryū. He was gazing out the window, but, from her position, Karin could see the glasses perched on his nose, and the white of his shirt peeking out from underneath his baby blue sweatshirt. His pants were also white and so pristine it was almost clinical.

Chad took a seat on one of the armchairs, and directly opposite him was an empty loveseat. Feeling the weight of everyone's eyes on her, Karin quickly pulled Yuzu to the open seat, trying to ignore the anxiousness bubbling in her stomach.

* * *

Rukia took it upon herself to break up the silence. The only words spoke before the two Kurosaki children showed up had been the heated exchange between Tatsuki and Renji, when her friend had called Ichigo a coward. She normally would have been right with the girl in defending Ichigo, but the brunette's anger had been so explosive that it took all of them by surprise. The argument would have probably lasted longer than the two minutes it had if it hadn't been for Chad breaking into Tatsuki's rant, (in support of her, of course) and told Renji to shut his trap.

Silence had descended between everyone then, but they still had managed to converse, through subtle glances and movements, though Tatsuki had made it clear that she wanted to tear Renji's head off of his shoulders.

"What are you two doing here?" she asked, but couldn't help but almost snort aloud. They didn't even know why they were there. The search for Ichigo had been called off several hours ago, and she and Renji had only happened upon Chad and Orihime by chance. They hadn't even said anything, just tagging along toward his apartment, meeting both Uryū and Tatsuki on the way. It could have been just a meeting between old friends, but the atmosphere felt more like a funeral than anything.

Even without the annoying strawberry around, Rukia couldn't help but feel a slight warm glow in her chest. They had all convened like this before, sans Arasawa, most of the time at Ichigo's house.

"Onii-chan sent us."

Rukia blinked. "I'm sorry, what did you say?" Her eyes were focused only on Yuzu, who withered under her stare.

"Ichi-nii," Karin said, prompting Rukia to turn to her. As she did so she noticed that everybody else in the room was staring at her as well. "He told us to come here, or at least go to Chad before he left."

"You were with Ichigo before he left? Do you know where he went!?" Renji's voice had been hard and held a dangerous tone, something Karin and Yuzu picked up on judging by the way their eyes narrowed.

"He said he didn't know where he was going," Karin said, her jaw set in a way that reminded Rukia of Ichigo when he was getting angry. She hurried to intervene.

"Don't worry about Renji," she said, cutting off her fellow shinigami and whatever Tatsuki had opened her mouth to say. "He's just worried about Ichigo. We all are. But you guys must be having a rougher time than we are." To her side she noticed Renji stiffen and she felt an odd sense of satisfaction seeing whither under her subtle chastisement. And the signs were there, on the girls faces. Yuzu had slightly puffy eyes rimmed with red, and the usual bubbly sheen in her eyes was gone. Karin on the other hand looked almost like a tired, cornered animal, with taunt muscles and bags under her eyes.

"We need your help," she started again, getting everyone to look at her after the small silence. "We need to know anything, anything at all, that could help us find your brother. Can you tell us something?" To the masses of the Goteijūsantai, Ichigo was missing and would be presumed rouge if he hasn't been found within three months. That itself would have raised warning flags for Rukia and Renji, but the fact that the remaining captains had had an emergency meeting with Yoruichi, Urahara, and Ichigo's dad as soon as they appeared just cemented their suspicions.

Karin was shaking her head, but Yuzu spoke up again. "N-not that I can think off." she said. "He was angry though. He slammed the door when he came in, and nearly tore his room door off the hinges." Everybody exchanged looks. That didn't sound like Ichigo at all and they all knew it. Sure he could be a bit short tempered, but the only time he had ever really destroyed anything was when he was fighting. Then he destroyed a lot of things.

Tatsuki cleared her throat, knocking Rukia out of her inner thoughts. "You said he was angry, do you know what about?"

The Kuchiki turned from the black haired teen back to the Kurosaki twins. Yuzu was fiddling with the necklace around her throat, obviously lost in thought, leaving Karin to answering the question. "It was dad. He was angry about something dad did, and he said that was why he was leaving."

Rukia stared at the young girl. Kurosaki Isshin was the reason that Ichigo was missing? Then what was the whole business with the emergency captain's meeting? A frown marred her face, as a realization hit her. The captain's knew why Ichigo was gone, or, more specifically, the specifics behind his sudden departure. Why hadn't they told the lieutenants? Or even just Ichigo's close friends? They deserved to know. And what had his father done that drove Ichigo to run away? Why was he to be declared rouge after three months? Were they going to have to kill him?

The thought alone was preposterous, and made Rukia want to laugh. Ichigo had faced down captains and a madman with transcendent power at the age of fifteen, and then faced a man with enough power to defeat the Zero Division and the Soul King. With all those accomplishments and more under his belt, Kurosaki Ichigo may as well have been a synonym for invincible and undefeatable. He was a complete powerhouse, with ungodly speed and strength, enough endurance to sate Kenpachi's bloodlust, and such a high constitution anything less than an officer seated third seat and above have a chance to scratch him and only captain level shinigami had a chance to defeat him.

Dead and Ichigo didn't go into a sentence unless one was talking about his enemies.

Rukia glanced around the room, seeing thoughtful expressions on everyone's face. They were making the same connections that she was, seeing the large gaps in the information that they were given by the captains and Urahara. She shifted the shawl around her shoulders and recrossing her legs for the lack some anything to do. And what should she do? Confront the captains, questioning the whole of Seireitei in the process and probably lose her job in the process? But this was Ichigo she was talking about. He was a dear friend to her and even took on all of the Seireitei for her. She knew he'd do it again, so wasn't it her job as a friend to do the same?

But that was from a different time, by the Soul King it felt like a different era. Before both she and Ichigo had forged such strong bonds that had been tempered and strengthened through many trials and two wars. There were people that were extremely loyal to Ichigo in the Goteijūsantai. Everybody owed their lives to him, twice over, something that no one, not even her, would be able to repay him. It was well known to all shinigami that he had sacrificed his powers to save them, and the que for the donation of reiatsu to jumpstart his powers again had been astounding. He was a hero to the people, and a friend or trusted acquaintance to just about all the captains.

Even Captain Soifon gave reiatsu to help.

In short, Ichigo was a part of the Gotei officially, accepted as a Substitute Shinigami and as someone that they could rely upon. The captains wouldn't have withheld information about Ichigo if it was going to harm him, but from what she knew there wasn't any reason to omit any information. There must be another piece of the puzzle that was missing, a major piece of information that was too sensitive for the majority of people to know.

"So why are you here? It can't be to tell us that." It was Tatsuki. She had been caught up everything that had happened with Ichigo and Soul Society after the war with the quincy had finished. Rukia almost felt bad for her, she had just been thrown into a whole different world and her friend disappears.

"Ichi-nii," Karin started again, rubbing her upper arm under her sweatshirt (And was that Ichigo's scarf?), "he told us to go to Chad to get the full story, and to ask Rukia-nee to help us."

Rukia couldn't help but smile at the warm feeling that sprang in her chest. Is this what it was like to be an older sibling? To have people look up to you? Was this what Nii-sama and Ichigo felt like whenever their sisters called them that? It was such a great feeling. Still she managed to push those thoughts into the back of her mind and focus on something that Karin had said.

"Help you? Help you with what."

Glancing around around the room, and suddenly wary with all the attention on her, Karin reached into her pocket and pulled out an old and battered Shinigami Daiko badge.

* * *

The alcohol was left untouched, curiously enough. Resting, unstoppered and full, next to his sake saucer on the banister, his straw hat hanging off a nearby post, leaving the wind to tug at his exposed hair freely.

Inwardly he lamented at his inability to consume his favourite drink, and Nanao hadn't even forbidden him from drinking it. The mood was perfect, too; fate finally taking pity on an old soul and leaving him with nothing to do but wait. And wait he did, gazing over the torchlit Seireitei with his single good eye, as a full moon hung high in the sky to the south. Another breeze gusted against Shunsui, ruffling his the pink kimono on his shoulders, carrying with it a hint of the upcoming autumn. It really was a romantic sight, and he couldn't help but muse that Ukitake would have loved it.

Sorrow swelled in his soul, the thought if his late friend. A little over two months gone, and Shunsui still had a hard time believing that his brother in all but blood was gone. Sure, he had been sickly for the longest of times and they both had gone through some harrowing experiences in their afterlives, but it never occurred to him that Ukitake would die, not before him at least. He was the foolhardy one of the two; the lazy, unmotivated one whose lax and pacifistic tendencies would lead him to an early grave. Ukitake on the other hand was cool, calm, and collected, always serene and in grounded: a stable pillar of birch that anything could lean one for strength.

But he was gone, dead after giving his life as the Soul Kings Right hand to protect Soul Society, and now Shunsui was the last of a forgotten generation of souls. Yamamoto was dead (something that was still hard to believe) as was Ukitake and Unohana. The last of a generation of monsters whose powers defied logic and changed worlds. He was the last alive that remembered the times before Soul Society was formed, when shinigami were ruthless bloodthirsty demons, and for more than just Hollows and Quincy. He remembered seeing battles between demigods and devils, angels and their fallen brethren, monsters and heroes…

His soul eye fixed itself on the distant luminescent moon, that bathed the world in its silvery glow, that reminded him of that orange haired child. Kurosaki Ichigo's zampakutō was aptly named Zangetsu, Slaying Moon, and Kyōraku Shunsui would be hard pressed to find a name so befitting for the child. With his constant presence, immense reiatsu, and even his hollow powers, he represented the dark and the light the moon is so commonly associated with, that wasn't even to mention his growth potential!

Shunsui hummed thoughtfully, casually reaching out and pouring himself a generous amount of sake into his saucer, before bringing the small dish to his lips and downing the entire contents in one go. He let the familiar burn of alcohol blaze its way down his throat, before sighing in content, the fast action bringing back memories. The old man had brought him here two and a half centuries ago, before even Aizen had shown his face and peace had permeated the realms. That night Yamamoto had drunk with him, speaking words that would forever ingrain themselves into Shunsui's mind.

" _I am old, Shunsui, and I will only get older. There will come a time when I encounter an enemy that I cannot conquer and at that time I will be dead. Already my flesh and bone fail me;_ Ryūjin' _s flame smoulders. I know not who will succeed me, nor do I know when, but I ask this of you, my apprentice. Should you live, should I fall and Soul Society continue, I ask only that you promote change. I am old and stubborn and set in my ways, but far be it from me or any other than the gods to believe they know the future…"_

The memory brought with it a the smell of ash, the smell of the old man, and once again Shunsui felt sorrow threaten to consume him. Yamamoto, Ukitake, and Unohana as well as several other captains were dead, not to mention the loss of life the lower tiers of the Goteijūsantai suffered, Aizen was partially unbound, the Seireitei was in disarray, he had high powered arrancar to deal with, as well as irate and recovering shinigami captains that wanted nothing more than to relax. That wasn't even to mention the meeting he had with the Zero Division coming up, or that fact that Kurosaki Ichigo, the hero of both the Winter War and the Thousand Year Blood War (along with many other accolades) was missing.

Shunsui sighed pouring himself another serving of sake and sipped at it, letting the liquid sit on his tongue for a second before swallowing. The coming years was going to be troublesome.

Why did he take this job again?

Suddenly Kyōraku felt several reiatsu fluctuations, before his lieutenant, Nanao threw open the door to his private study. How uncharacteristic of her.

"Taicho," she started, and just by that single word, he knew that something was wrong, even if he hadn't felt those fluctuations.

"I felt it," he said, gently setting his saucer next to the sake bottle; oh, how he wished he could stay and enjoy the bottle now that he found some peace only for it to be shattered again. "Let's go see what it is this time. Shall we?"

* * *

AN: How'd you like it?

Personally i think this chapter is one of my better ones. I put some serious thought into the whole premise behind the story and even the chapter itself. I actually had this chapter written before last Christmas, but have been putting off uploading it simply because, I wished to make sure I had a solid understanding of what I could do with the characters given the fact that I was going to introduce the Bleach-verse to the DxD-verse, which is, admittedly, a _huge_ expansion.

People might notice that Ichigo might seem childish with how he throws a tantrum, and I'll admit that I probably exaggerated his situation, but that's the wonders of fanfiction and being a teen. Still, I believe that Ichigo would have been extremely upset if he wasn't able to life in the Human World after the Thousand Year Blood War, so I simply decided to expand on that a bit.

I know this chapter doesn't have any mention of the DxD verse outside of a simple vague sentence at the end, but that's going to change next chapter, so don't worry DxD fans.

Anyway, let me know what you think in a comment, and I'll try to get back to anyone who does as soon as I can. I'll upload the next chapter as soon as I finish it, but I'm actually doing several stories right now, so… it'll come when it comes.

Thanks for taken the time to read, and I really hope you enjoyed it- VigilantSempai


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